Tag: DROID DNA

The HTC One is not even widely available and the latest version of Sense UI used on the handset has already been ported to the previous HTC handset – the DROID DNA. A developer over at XDA forums has worked hard to bring the latest Sense UI to the current Verizon flagship of the Taiwanese maker.

Below is a video of the latest Sense UI in action on the DROID DNA -:

The whole ROM based on Sense 5 UI is still a bit buggy though with a few basic features not working properly. One of the new Sense 5 feature, Zoe, is also not working but it should not be long before the developer fixes the issue. However, the new BlinkFeed homescreen works flawlessly and can be customized according to your liking as well.

HTC has already confirmed that it will be bringing the latest Sense UI to some of its older devices including the DROID DNA. However, knowing HTC, the company is going to take its own sweet time to bring the new UI to DNA and will not be implementing certain features that make use of the new hardware on the One, including Zoe.

HTC has confirmed on its Facebook page that it will be bringing its latest version of Sense to quite a few of its existing handsets. Sense 5 from HTC is a radically different than the previous versions of Sense with a new Blink UI for Homescreen, and system apps that follow the Holo guidelines. HTC has even done away with its iconic Weather/Clock widget, and given the whole UI a very flat feel.

HTC states that over the next few months global variants of HTC One X, One X+, One S and the Butterfly will be getting the Sense 5 update. However, software features that are available on the HTC One due to its specific hardware will not be available on these devices. It has also been confirmed that HTC will be bringing Sense 5 to the DROID DNA.

Whether the carrier variants of the above handsets like the AT&T One XL or the EVO 4G LTE will get the Sense 5 update or not, depends on their carrier’s approval.

Before you get too excited, keep in mind that HTC may reconsider its decisions down the line and may not bring Sense 5 to one or any of the devices mentioned above.

Today, the folks over at ETradeSupply posted have posted a video comparing the chassis of HTC’s upcoming M7 handset with the Droid DNA. The latter is the company’s current flagship in the United States and in Japan (under the name Butterfly), while the former is going to be HTC’s first-half flagship for 2013.

Compared to the One X, the M7 is slightly taller and wider, while still being slightly short of the DROID DNA. It also does not feature a curved design of the current One series flagship. Instead, the M7 shares its design cues with the DROID DNA.

Surprisingly, the M7 sports a dedicated camera button, which is very rare to find in the Android ecosystem nowadays.

The chassis leak confirms the rumor of the M7 sporting a 4.7-inch S-LCD3 with full HD (1080p) resolution.

HTC is expected to unveil the M7 and other variants of the One series at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona next month.

Today, HTC released its unaudited Q4, 2012 financial results and things are still looking bleak for the company. HTC was expected to make a comeback in the Q4 of last year thanks to the strong sales of the DROID DNA and the HTC Butterfly in Japan.

Instead, the company posted its lowest profit ever since 2004 indicating its inability to come up with impressive and “hero” devices since the last two years. For the fourth quarter, HTC’s net income was NT$1 billion, its lowest since 2004. Revenues also dropped to a mere NT$60 billion, again its lowest in the last 11 quarters.

Loyal HTC users and analysts expect HTC to bounce back in 2013 with the launch of some terrific hero devices including the M7, which is going to be based on the DROID DNA/J Butterfly. The HTC J Butterfly also posted some strong sales figure towards the end of December in Japan, which should help its Q1, 2013 financial figures.